Kentucky WBB extends several high school offers in July

After restructuring her staff early in the offseason, Kentucky women’s basketball head coach Kyra Elzy has turned her focus to the recruiting trail. The program saw the departures of two key staff members in assistant Amber Smith (Indiana) and director of player development Daniel Boice (Florida) but Elzy retooled by bringing in Crystal Kelly and Jenny Huth as replacements, respectively.

Additionally, there was also the loss of the director of recruiting Aisha Foy, who was replaced by a new recruiting assistant, Jodi Ansert. To build on that, Elzy created a new position altogether, bringing on Liz Brown as NIL director. Ansert and Brown will be directly tied to recruiting efforts moving forward. With Smith — arguably Kentucky’s top recruiter since Elzy took over as head coach ahead of the 2020-21 season — gone, Kelly will be the one taking her place.

Kelly is a Louisville native who won the 2004 Miss Kentucky Basketball award at Sacred Heart. She has significant ties around the state and even across the country. She is now in charge of overseeing Kentucky’s recruiting and has already been hitting the trail over the last few weeks. Which brings us to the main point of this article: who has this new-look staff been paying attention to at the high school level as of late?

Along with Elzy and Kelly, assistants Niya Butts and Jen Hoover have been doing plenty of grassroots recruiting throughout the month of July. They’ve made stops in Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Louisiana, and, of course, Kentucky. The Wildcats have yet to secure a commitment for any upcoming classes up to this point. Who did they extend scholarships to so far this month? Let’s find out.

Class of 2024 offers

Zania Socka-Nguemen (F) 6-4 | Sidwell Friends (Washington, DC)

• Considered a four-star recruit and the No. 43 overall rising senior in the country by ESPN, Zania Socka-Nguemen announced her Kentucky offer on July 11. It was one of five offers she received in a two-day span, joining Georgia, Oregon, Ole Miss, and Florida. The likes of Indiana, Louisville, Tennessee, Michigan, Maryland, and several others have also reached out. Socka-Nguemen is incredibly mobile for someone her size and plays with plenty of aggression. The lefty saw her stock rise during EYBL (Nike) play for Team Durant this month. Northwestern and Michigan have gotten her on campus for visits in recent months.

Eris Lester (G) 5-11 | Orange Park (Orange Park, FL)

• Another rising senior who shined on the EYBL stage for the Miami Suns this month was Eris Lester, who also announced her Kentucky offer on July 11. Along with UK, the likes of Auburn, NC State, Purdue, Missouri, and Wisconsin have all reached out with scholarships this month. Lester is a four-star recruit ranked No. 39 overall in the 2024 class by ESPN. She saw a major jump in her ranking last fall, going from unranked to inside the top 40. Lester is on pace to score over 2,000 high school points and also runs track.

Jenessa Cotton (F) 6-3 | Mater Dei (Orange, CA)

• In a three-day span, Jenessa Cotton picked up offers from Colorado (July 11), Kentucky (July 12), and Michigan (July 13). While she’s not ranked by ESPN, she was recently offered by Louisville in June and UNLV not long before that in April. California has also offered. She was playing up on the AAU circuit with Cal Sparks as a rising junior and then made an even bigger impact this summer. Cotton’s shooting range and nose for rebounding at 6-foot-3 make her an interesting prospect.

Class of 2025 offers

Tianna Chambers (PG) 6-1 | Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village, CO)

• Doubling as a star in both basketball and soccer, Tianna Chambers announced an offer from Kentucky on July 18, tagging both Coach Elzy and Coach Butts. Following an impressive run at the Nike Nationals in Chicago earlier this month, Marquette and Alabama also reached out with scholarships. Mississippi State and Colorado State, among other smaller schools, have extended offers, too. Chambers, who played up a year in 17U this summer, is a pure point guard with good size and even better vision. She’s shown the ability to knock down shots from well beyond the three-point line, as well.

Avery Gordon (P) 6-6 | Brownsburg (Brownsburg, IN)

• Already ranked as a four-star and the No. 44 overall rising junior in the country by ESPN, Avery Gordon’s size at 6-foot-6 is what stands out first and foremost. Gordon announced her offer from UK on July 16, adding to a list that also includes Penn State, Clemson, Iowa State, and Texas Tech, which all came in July. Gordon has been playing up a year for Indiana Elite 17U on the 3SSB (Adidas) circuit this summer.

Logyn Greer (F) 6-3 | Friends’ Central (Wynnewood, PA)

• Suiting up for Elevate Elite 17U on the 3SSB circuit, Logyn Greer’s stock has soared as a result of her impressive AAU play. Kentucky offered on July 14, not long before Arizona State, California, and Ole Miss did the same. Ohio State and Michigan also reached out with offers in July. Greer unofficially visited North Carolina in June. She has an older brother, Ejay, a 6-foot-8 guard who is going into his freshman season at Bowling Green. Although Greer is listed as a forward, she possesses guard capabilities and extends her range beyond the arc.

Class of 2027 offers

Ivanna Wilson Manyacka (G) 6-1 | Bullis School (Potomac, MD)

• At just 14 years old and still not yet in high school, Ivanna Wilson Manyacka is looking the part of a potential future star. Power 5 offers have been coming in since she was 13, including ones from Maryland, Michigan, Virginia, Georgia, and more. Kentucky got in the mix on July 6 with an offer. She was averaging 30 points and 11 steals per game as a 6-foot-1 eighth-grader playing point guard.